Throughout theTour de France controversy, experts have noted that taking testosterone thenight before a competition would not lead to a power surge the next day. EvenFloyd Landis, who rode into Paris wearing the yellow jersey on July 24, hasstated that the male hormone "doesn't work that way." Based on theresults of his eagerly awaited B sample, no sane person would question Landis'sfamiliarity with the substance. But however all that illegal stuff invaded hissystem, it may have finally kicked in on Monday when Landis, tying a record setby American Idol judge Simon Cowell, made a whirlwind tour of all four networkmorning shows. He insisted that he is innocent and said that he wants to remainin cycling, "the most beautiful sport in the world." As for thequestion of why his B sample confirmed the finding of a testosterone flood, hehas no answers. He is not about answers now; he is about strategy.

Long gone are thedays of late July when he was fumbling before the microphones and offering theJack Daniels defense and saying, when asked if he had ever used performanceenhancers, "I will say no." Landis has hired a new lawyer, and he nowbrings his wife, Amber, on appearances and makes heavy use of the wordprotocols, as in (to Matt Lauer), "The people doing the testing didn'tfollow their own protocols." But he is talking only about the schedules onwhich his test failures were announced, not their validity. Landis, who isexpected to be stripped of his Tour title soon, is envious of sprinter JustinGatlin, who was told that he had tested positive for excess testosterone threemonths before the public knew, "while I had only two days to react tomine."

Still, the Gatlincamp's response is not exactly redolent of extra prep time. Gatlin's coach,Trevor Graham, who seems to specialize in controversial athletes such as TimMontgomery and Marion Jones, last week could suggest only that the trackcommunity is out to get Gatlin and repeat that a masseur, ChristopherWhetstine, had smeared the runner with testosterone cream. (Two months afterthe alleged rubdown--which Whetstine denies--the masseur was assaulted inIndianapolis. The prime suspect is Llewellyn Starks, a Nike employee who hasworked as an adviser to Montgomery and Jones.) The plot sickens, but thedenouement may be at hand. Last Thursday the USOC barred Graham from itsfacilities, and North Carolina Central University, where Graham has beentraining athletes, followed suit. Graham's sponsor, Nike, when asked if he wasstill employed there, said, "He is today."

PHOTONBC'S TODAY/AP

¬†"PROTOCOL" BREACHWith his wife at his side on NBC, Landis said the ICU botched hiscase.

Jumping routines. Resistance bands. Yoga. In an ongoing workout series that begins with this week's look at 49ers safety Tony Parrish, SI will show how NFL players toughen their cores. It's not just six-pack abs they want: A solid core can be the difference between becoming a star and losing your job

Phillies second baseman Chase Utley has put up some filthy numbers in 2006, proving he's more than just another pretty face in an ugly uniform. In fact, he's SI's choice as the dirtiest player in baseball (and we mean that in the best possible way)

Rededicated after a sixth-place finish at the last FIBA World Championship, the U.S. will be a heavy favorite in Japan, with any of seven other teams in contention for a medal. Here's SI's predicted order of finish for the 24-team tournament, which begins on Aug. 19 and ends on Sept. 3, in Saitama.

Tom Brady is
secure; so is Reggie Bush. But in 32 camps across the country, hundreds of
lesser-known players are fighting for their football lives. Over the next three
weeks jobs will be won or lost, careers will be made or broken. It's the
unforgiving law of the NFL jungle